Middle Tennessee's Kermit Davis emerges as lead candidate to be Ole Miss coach

Middle Tennessee’s Kermit Davis has emerged as the front-runner to be the next coach at Ole Miss, two people familiar with the matter told USA TODAY Sports. Those people spoke on the condition of anonymity because the hiring process is not complete.

Middle Tennessee was left out of the NCAA tournament on Sunday after losing in the Conference USA quarterfinals but will play in the NIT beginning Tuesday.

Ole Miss athletics director Ross Bjork spent last week meeting with candidates and has moved quickly to wrap up the search process, according to the people familiar with the matter.

Davis engineered a stunning upset of Michigan State in 2016 in the first round of the NCAA tournament and returned in 2017 to win another first round game.

A native of Leakesville, Miss., and former Mississippi State player, he has a 393-234 overall record as a head coach and is completing his 16th season at Middle Tennessee.